Underswitch
by sasuxnarufan773
Summary: Nora is a 19 year old college student with terrible past. She decides to get a fresh start in the city of New Ebbot, a small town at the base of a mountain. Along with her cousin Marriott, she'll make new friends on her journey to recovery. But all is not as it seems in this town and her new friends seem to be...different than most. #humantale
1. New Places

As the bus flies over a bump, Nora is suddenly jerked awake from her nap. She stretches her arms and looks out the window, squinting at the bright sun. She sees a large sign that says " New Ebbot town next exit", She sighs and pulls a letter out of her bag and looks over it.

" I know you don't like going to new places, but this will be good for you. Plus you'll be living with your cousin, so it wont be too bad. Maybe you can begin to heal once you meet some new friends. In any case, I'll be checking up you guys within a couple of week to see how you're settling. I know you're going to do great. Chin up and have fun."

Love, Aunt Grace

" New Ebbot huh?" she muses to herself. Well it was _definitely_ going to be different to say the least. She wasn't one for enjoying change, but her aunt was right. It was kind of nice to be in a new place for once, especially after what she had just been through. She shakes her head at the thought and moves on. Nora puts the letter back in her bag and sits up straight. Her stop was coming up.

As she looked out the window, Nora could see her cousin Marriott waving at her from the bus stop. She gives a small wave in return and starts to stand as the bus comes to a stop. When she steps out into the aisle, she's pushed past by a tall man without so much as an excuse me. Nora sighs and heads out of the bus. It was like this anywhere she went, people in too big a hurry to give crap about the people around them. Just outside the bus, Marriott stood, bouncing slightly, waiting for Nora to get off the bus. Once her cousin makes her way out, she pulls her into a big hug. " NORI! Its been so long" Marriott exclaims. Nori was the nickname Marriott had given her when they were younger, on account of the seaweed snacks she always seemed to have. "Hey Marri! Ive missed you!" She tells her.

Marriott releases her and steps back to look at her. " Man you got tall, well taller. You've always been taller than me." She chuckles and walks around her to help her with her bags. Nora reaches the underneath storage on the side on bus and grabs her two suitcases and begins to drag the to her cousins car. Marriott pops open the trunk and the two load Nora's stuff into the car. It was a tight fit but they manage to arrange all the luggage in the trunk. Nora slams the trunk door down with a satisfied huff and walks around the car to hop in the front seat.

Marriott puts her key in the ignition and the car sputters to life. " I've really got to get this car serviced" she mumbles to herself. She looks behind her and starts to pull out when someone darts behind the car. Marriott slams on the brakes and honks her horn. "Gah stupid kid! Watch you are going!" Marriott shouts out the window. The yellow haired kid stops, turns to face the car, sticks his tongue out and keeps running. "Why you little-" Nora grabs Marriott's arm and she lets it go. " I swear kids these days have no respect. We would have had our butts whooped if we ever acted like that growing up" Marriott sighs and resumes driving. Nora adjusts herself in her seat and rolls her window down, staring out at the town and it whizzes by. The two sit in silence for awhile before Marriott turns the radio on.

She turns the dial til she finds a station she like and turns the volume up a bit. " So do you listen to music nowadays Nori?" She asks to break the tension. Nora thinks for a moment. "Yeah, I like some of the new stuff today, although i don't listen to the radio very much. I mostly use an app on my phone to listen." Nora tells her. This peaks Marriott's interest. " Oh? What app is it?" She asks. "I use Spoofy and Pangaea sometimes" She takes out her phone and scrolls through it and shows her cousin. " Sweet! I use Spoofy too. Add me and we can share our playlist with each other. My username is Marrionette651." Nora adds the name in her friends list and puts her phone away. The car pulls up to a stop light and a small group of people cross the street. Marriott looks over at Nora and smiles. " Ya know, its really good to see you Nori, it can get pretty monotonous around her. It'll be great to have a fresh face in town." Nora smiles in return. " Yeah, I think it will do me some good to be in a new place where no one knows me, and it seems pretty quiet around here so I can focus on my school work. I've really missed you Marri, its gonna be fun living together again. Now that we are older we don't have a bed time anymore. we can stay up as late as we want and watch anime." Nora laughs and sighs. She fondly remembers life before the accident, life before everything went wrong.

She pulls her seat belt a little tighter and sits up straight. She takes a deep breath and calms her self. Marriott frowns. " Are you ok over there?" She asks, concern in her voice. Nora gives her a reassuring smile " Yeah I'm fine. I was just thinking about when we were young. I'm good now. You don't have to worry about me." Marriott gives her a look. "Well ok then. Hey, you still watch stuff on TubeTube right?" Shes asks Nora, trying to change the subject. Nora nods. " Have you seen the new episodes Hen Teeth put out recently?" A big grin forms on Nora's face " Yes I have! Are you ready for the new season of RWDY?" She asks excitedly. The light changes and the car pulls forward. " Fuck yeah I'm ready!" Marriott exclaims. Nora reaches for a high five and Marriott returns it.

A few minutes pass and soon they reach a fork in the road and the car travels down the left path. Nora gazes at the old style brick homes flying past her window. "Almost home" Marriott tells her. Nora nods and shifts in her seat. _"Beep Beep You have mail"_ Nora's phone tells her. She reaches in her bag and and fishes it out. _" Hey Nora! Hows the move going?"_ It was one of her collage friends. She quickly types out a reply as the car pulls up into the drive way of her new house. " Aaaaaaand we're here. Welcome home" Marriott says gleefully.

Nora looks around at her new dwelling. It was a two story brick house, chimney rising from the top, vines creeping up the side of the house. A wrought iron gate sets in front of the entrance to the back yard. A large oak tree resides in the front yard surrounded by a lush green lawn, a sizeable flower bed in front of a large bay window. She unbuckles her seat belt and exits the car, grabbing her bags from the backseat. She sets the by the front door and then goes back for her suitcases. Marriott wiggles her keys out of her purse, unlocks the front door and helps bring the suitcases inside. Once everything was in the house the door was shut and Nora was ushered into the living room. Marriott begins to give Nora the tour of the house. " This is the living room. There's a reading nook over on that side of the wall" She points to the left of her at the large window with tall bookcases on either side. In between the bookshelves are a couple of beanbags. " I know how much you love to read. Probably the same or more than i do, so feel free to use it whenever you please." Nora nods and turns her attention behind her cousin. " That's the dinning room behind me, the kitchen is to the right of that."

Across the way from the living room is a short hall way, pictures adorning its length. " Down this hallway is a small bathroom and the stairs for the upper floor" Marriott explains. She grabs one of the suitcases and a bag and walks down the hall and up the stairs. Immediately at the top of the stairs is a smaller sized living room and to the left and right are more rooms, two on the left and three on the right. "On the left is a storage closet and the master bedroom. On the right is your bedroom, a Jack and Jill bathroom, and another room I've been using as an office. " Nora walks over to the door to her room and opens it. Its a nice sized room with a walk in closet, a queen size bed and a four drawer dresser with a mirror. " Wow Marri, this is great! Thank you!" Nora puts her stuff down next to her bed. " I'm glad you like it. I'll leave you to unpack, I'm going to start dinner." Marriott gives her cousin a hug before leaving the room and heading down stairs to the kitchen.

In no time at all, Nora has her suitcases unpacked, clothes hung in her closet, and her knickknacks lined up on top of the dresser. She flops down on her bed for a moment and stares up at the ceiling, a contented sigh escaping her lips. She closes her eyes for a few seconds before getting up, grabbing her toiletries and heading to the bathroom to put them away. She then opens the door into the upstairs living room and sniffs the air. "Dinner smells amazing" she thinks to herself. She walks downstairs and into the kitchen. Marriott is busy stirring something in a pot. Nora clears her throat and speaks. " Whatever it is that you're making smells really good" She walks over to the stove to take a peek. " I'm making goulash tonight, hope you're hungry!"

Soon the food is finished and plated and the pair sit down to eat, engaging in idle chatter whilst eating. After awhile Nora is finished with her food and Marriott grabs her empty plate along with her own plate and takes them into the kitchen. Nora begins to protest. "Hey, you don't have to do that. I can do the dishes". "Nonsense," Marriott tells her. " You've had a long day of packing, travel and unpacking. plus there's not much to clean. I've got this. I'm sure you are very tired so you can go rest." She smiles at Nora. " Are you sure?" Nora asks. "Yup. I'm positive. Plus you've got a big day ahead of you tomorrow, so get some sleep." She points a spoon at her, gesturing to the second floor. Nora chuckles and stifles a yawn. "Alright alright I'm going. Goodnight Marri." She walks over and gives her cousin and hug before heading upstairs. "Goodnight Nori."

Nora slowing makes her way up the stairs and into her room. She walks over to the dresser and pulls out her pajamas. she quickly undresses and put them on. " Eh, I'll shower tomorrow morning" she thinks out loud. She then meanders into the bathroom to brush her teeth. She pour a small amount of mouthwash into a cup and starts to rinse. Next to the bottle of mouthwash is a small, round container roughly the size of a ring box. She opens it and sets it in front of her. She then leans into the mirror and puts the tip of her fingernail into her eye socket. She gently pulls and the prosthetic eye pops out. Nora puts it in the case and closes it, turns off the bathroom light and leaves the bathroom. She waddles over to the bed, pulls the covers back and gets settled in. She sighs sleepily and reaches over to turn her lamp off. Nora lays her head on the plush pillow, closes her eyes and falls into a deep sleep.


	2. New Faces

Nora awoke to sunlight streaming down on her face. " Damn. I forgot to close the blinds" she mumbles to herself. She rolls over to look at the clock next to her. 6:30. She groans and flops back over. She had wanted to sleep longer. Nora sighs and rolls herself out of bed. " Might as well get up now." She sighs and shuffles into the bathroom. She flips the bathroom light on and squints in the bright light above her. Yawning, she rubs her eyes and looks at her face in the mirror. One green eye stares back at her. She sighs and undresses for the shower. She turns the handle of the tub and waits for the water to get warm before turning the shower part on. She runs through her routine and shuts the water off. She steps out and shivers. " I forgot how cold it is in the mornings." Nora mumbles to herself, quickly toweling herself off and wrapping the towel around her hair. Wiping the steam off the mirror with her hand, she makes a hole in which to see her self. Opening the case that holds her eye, she leans into the mirror and places her false eye in its socket. Nodding, she walks out of the bathroom and over to the dresser to pick her clothes for the day. After some internal debate, she decides on a knee length black skirt, a deep red 3/4 sleeve v neck shirt, black knee high socks and a beanie. She throws on her underwear and dresses in the rest of her clothes. Undoing the towel on her head, shaking her hair out, she grabs a brush from the bed side table and brushes her hair out and lets it air dry. once its dry she puts the beanie on and heads out of her room and down the stairs.

It was quiet, "Seems like Marri is still sleeping," Nora thinks to her self. She walks to the kitchen and fills the kettle for tea, puts on the stove and waits for it to boil. Grabbing a mug from the cupboard, she pops the tea bag in and sets it next to the kettle. "Hmm, toast sounds good." She puts two slices in the toaster and starts it. Walking to the fridge, she slips on her socks and starts to fall and in a panic grabs for the fridge door and pulls the handle off on the way down. " SHIT!" she yells as she hits the floor. Nora hisses at the pain in her elbow as she sits herself up sighing. Grabbing the counter, she pulls herself up and fixes the fridge door. She leans against the counter, rubbing her elbow and shaking her head. "Man, I really need to be more careful." She says into the silence of the kitchen. She pulls butter and jam from the fridge and sets it on the table as the kettle starts to whistle. Turning of the heat, she lifts it and pours the hot water in her cup and lets her tea steep. The scent of toast preceded its arrival and shortly after the bread popped out of the toaster, hot and crispy. She grabs a plate and slings the toast out of the toaster onto it, burning the tips of her fingers a bit. Grabbing the mug from the counter and her toast, Nora seats herself at the table. Forgetting a knife, she then stands back up , grabs one from the drawer and a spoon for her tea and sits back down. She spreads a small amount of butter and jam on her toast and takes a bite. She takes the teabag out of her mug and puts it on a napkin. She pours some sugar in her tea and stirs, taking a sip and smiles. Nothing like a good cup of tea in the morning.

Nora is just finishing her toast when she hears her cousin walking down the stairs. Marriott shuffles into to kitchen yawning, her short blond hair a mess and eyes half closed. " I see you're up and at it early this morning" Marriott says through a yawn. Nora's ears turn red with shame " I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake you. Or fall for that matter" Nora says quietly. Marriott just chuckles " You didn't wake me up. I was already up when I heard you crash" she winks at her cousin. Nora just takes a sip of tea and looks away. This makes Marriott laugh more. She walks over to her coffee maker and starts it up. "So what are your plans for today nori?" she asks to her cousin. Nora finishes her mouthful of tea before answering. "Oh i was going to go down to the college and finish the paper work they need for my transfer. Then im not sure after that. Maybe wander around town for a bit, see whats new" she rambles for a bit and then goes back to her tea. Marriott thinks for a sec and then grabs her coffee and sits at the table next to Nora. " Well, i have some running around to do today, so if you want i can drop you off at the collage on my way" She tells Nora. "That would be great, if its not too much of a bother." Nora says, not wanting to throw her cousin off her routine. Marriott just shakes her head " Its no bother at all. Its on the way" she tells her as she walks back to the coffee pot, as it had finished it brew. Marriott pours a cup and takes a long sip. Nothing like a hot cup of black coffee to get you going in the morning. Marriott pops two pieces of bread in the toaster and takes a seat next to Nora. They sit in a comfortable silence until the toaster pops and the toast is ready. Marriott slathers butter and jam on her toast and digs into it.

Once all the breakfast had been consumed, the pair went about grabbing their stuff, putting on their shoes and coats and heading out the door. Marriott turns the key to lock the door behind them and unlocks the car door. Nora gets in the passenger side and buckles up, safety first and all. Marriott follows suit, adjusting her mirrors before starting up the car. Nora looks down at her phone. It was now 8 o'clock, the collage administrative building wouldn't be open til 9 so she had so time to kill. The collage wasn't too far from the house just a 15 minute drive, or a half an hour walk, and that's if you walked slow, so Nora would be able to sleep in before her morning classes, of which she was thankful for. Marriott backs out of the drive way and makes her way down the street. The radio was on low, set to some morning talk show Nora didnt recognize, the MTT Radio Show. She paid it no mind as she looked out the window at the houses and cars whizzing by. Soon the houses turned into building and stores as they made their way into town. Up ahead Nora could see the clock tower of the collage. She sits up in her seat and geta good look around. There are students walking up the street, some with backpacks, some just carrying their books in their arms, but all of them looked tired. Nora knew she would fit in well on that aspect of things. Collage was collage no matter where you were, tired students chugging coffee and energy drinks before a big test they had stayed up all night studying for. Soon Marriott had the car pulled into the parking lot of the admin building and in a parking spot. "Well this is you Nora, do you need any help getting where you need to go?" she asks her " Ive got some time before i need to be anywhere"

Nora shakes her head " Nope, I think I can manage, and if not I'll just ask someone. I do pretty good on my own for the most part" This was partly true. While she did find her way, she was pretty directionally challenged, getting lost fairly easy if the directions weren't very clear. "Well okay then, if you need anything call me, okay?" Marriott says, a little concerned for her cousin. Nora nods and leans over to get Marriott a quick hug before getting off the car, grabbing her bag and jacket as she does. She waves Marriott goodbye as the car pulls out of the spot and eventually out of the parking lot, on its way to its new destination, sputtering along as it did. Nora looks at her phone again. It was now 8:25, so she still had time before the building would be open. As such, Nora decided she would walk around a bit exploring her new campus, to get a feel for the place.

Students were slowing making their way to their classrooms, some sat at tables outside with the books out around them. There was a large courtyard with benches and tables with shading umbrellas above them. In the middle of the courtyard sat a fountain spewing water. A few birds were taking a drink at the edge, some bathed themselves in the cool water. A few trees were placed here and there, their leaves not yet fully grown as it was still the beginning of spring. Four tall buildings surrounded the courtyard in a square. These appeared to be the classrooms, for students and teachers were coming and going from the doors of said building. A smaller building sat in the back of the four buildings. It was labeled "Muffets Cafe". She would have to stop in later for a snack. Outside of the courtyard and the four buildings was a large music hall and a gym. Nora didn't think she would ever have a need to walk into those buildings as she had no real interest in such things. Still not see what could be the admin building she glances at her phone again while she walks, it was now 9:10. The Building would be open now, but that knowledge would be no use to her if she couldn't find the damned building. Still looking down at her phone as she walked, she didn't notice that she was walking right into someone. she looked up right as she made contact. "Oh no, im so sorry! i should have been paying attention to where i was going" she stumbles over her words in embarrassment. The woman she bumped into just gave her a patient smile. She was tall, even taller than Nora and she was a good 5'9". The woman had silver hair, which one would assume meant she was an older women, but she looked quite young, too young to have silver hair at the least. She would a light colored suit jacket and purple skirt and shirt, ankle length socks and ow heeled black pumps. Nora stared up at her for a moment before blinking and picking up her phone that she had dropped. The woman then spoke to her in gentle voice.

"It is quite alright, my child. No harm done. You seem to be lost, is there anything i can help you with?" she smiles at Nora. Nora pockets her phone before giving an answer. " Ah, well uh, I'm Nora. I'm a new student here, I've transferred from the collage in the next town over. I was looking for the Administrative building. Do you know which way it is?" She says, shaking slightly, very nervous for some unknown reason. The woman nodded " Why yes i do, ill show you the way" She extends her hand to Nora, who takes its and gives a quick shake. " I'm Toriel, by the way, a teacher here. Its very nice to meet you" Toriel smiles once again. "Come with me my child, i will show you the way" And so Nora adjusted her bag on her shoulder and followed Toriel to the admin building to start her adventure in this new place.


End file.
